College Effect - AU
by timinable
Summary: Following Jane Shepard through college, the universe, and everything. Love, mysteries, crime fighting, and an ancient professor (of sorts) included. Shakarian/Shepley shipping.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Right off the bat, this is an alternate universe, so there is not a Reaper threat, although danger will still abound. Basic notes on some changes for this particular universe. Turians can choose to go to college prior to their one year of mandatory military service.

Disclaimer: As always, I am merely borrowing Bioware's fantastic characters and sandbox. I don't make any money from this, and it's for my own amusement and satisfaction.

Chapter One

Diversity and Prejudice

Jane rolled her eyes behind her brother's back as he cracked thinly veiled slurs at a group of Turians walking just ahead of them. The twins, Jane and John Shepard, were making their way to the Benezia T'Soni Administration Building. It had recently been opened thanks to some very generous funding by Benezia, and Jane had no idea who that was. All she knew was this new admin building was supposed to be the most streamlined, most efficient, (most hyperbolic!), building ever, and here she was following her ass of a brother at the midnight hour because of glitches and database errors! She snorted.

"Yeah, that was a good one!" John laughed.

Another eyeroll. "That's not it, and you, sir, are an ass. You know you could try to make some friends while we're here. It wouldn't kill you." Jane elbowed him in the ribs. She didn't agree with his prejudice, but she could certainly understand where he was coming from. Growing up in the Traverse and being on the front lines of the war with the Batarians. Being raided frequently and having to fight against superior numbers with little to no back up. Watching neighbors and friends get taken to be sold into slavery, with no hope of ever seeing them again because the Council refused to engage on the ground. The Batarians were very good at guerrilla tactics. Yes, she could certainly understand her brother's bitterness, but they were on the Citadel now, the largest most diverse space station ever built, and the Turians in front of her were not responsible for the raids on her settlement.

"Oh I plan to make lots of friends!" John replied cheerily, with a wiggle of his eyebrows. "Lots of nice, human, girlfriends. Maybe I'll eventually join a fraternity. Maybe I'll join the Illuminations!" he said in an eerie voice.

Jane just shook her head, trying to suppress a laugh. She'd loved history in school, and had checked out practically every book ever written on Earth history, her favorite subject. She'd told her brother all the stories, about secret regimes toppled by the little guy, dark organizations overthrown to make a new era of space travel and interspecies peace. "OK. One: Illuminati. Two: Bad guys!" Jane shoved her brother lightly and then almost toppled over when he shoved her back. She punched his arm. "Seriously, why am I even related to you!" she joked. John grabbed her in a fierce hug.

"You'd miss me! Admit it!"

"Ok, I would miss you. But you're still an ass. At least try to be nice and not get arrested before the first day of class."

"FINE!" he huffed out with another squeeze around her shoulders before releasing her. She smiled lightly and shoved him one last time, as they rounded the corner to the administration building. Even though Jane had been on the Citadel for almost two weeks already, this particular building was a marvel; pristine white, glowing glass, rounded corners, and… whatever those were. She was no architect, and a corner probably wasn't a corner. The turians entered the building ahead of the twins, who stopped and oogled the interior. One of the turians, white facepaint striking against dark skin, said something to his friends while looking at John.

"See sis? All the same!" John said.

Jane glared at the group, who snorted, but moved along. "Were you not just doing the same thing, butthead? They probably heard you."

"Yeah, but you still stick up for me with all your intimidating pipsqueakness."

"Is that even a word? Did you just make up a word?"

"Maybe," he shrugged. John grabbed her hand and led her towards the scheduling office. Which, Jane thought, was probably where that group was heading. And knowing John and his hotheadedness, they might be asked out of college before they even started. She was so not looking forward to that. Hopefully she could reign in his temper. He did almost always listen to her. As they entered Scheduling, there were the turians as mentally predicted. Her brother snorted and she threaded her arm through his.

"If you could pick any major ever, what would you choose?" She already knew the answer, of course, but if she could get him distracted and talking about something besides how all aliens were evil it would be a win.

"I suppose I would choose zoology. Go forth and find a unicorn or something. Get my name in all the savvy journals and papers. Then with my new found fame, and my unicorn friend, I would find a nice family woman, have five sets of twins, possibly start my own biotiball team." John carried on drolly, and Jane tried to suppress a snort of laughter.

Two of the turians were called into the counseling offices, leaving one turian ahead of them. He turned and his dark blue face paint accented bright blue eyes, which Jane found highly intriguing.

"Garrus. Year One." the turian said to them.

"Jane. Also Year One." she held out her hand. Garrus looked at the proffered hand and fluttered his mandibles. When he didn't immediately take her hand, she shrugged. She'd read about some strange customs, and handshakes probably seemed strange to some species.

"I'm John. Her brother," eyes narrowed and a hint of menace creeped in.

Jane shook her head. "Seriously! Be nice!"

"I am!" John sputtered.

Garrus looked back and forth between them, clearly curious. "I just came here from Palaven. I'm majoring in Galactic Security and Physical Studies." Jane gathered from his tone, he'd rather choose something else, but opted not to pry.

"I haven't declared a major yet, but I was looking at engineering. I'm not sure if I want to take that much science," Jane laughed.

"I'm majoring in Galactic Security, also," John said. There was a hint of petulance. Galactic Security was the general major for those who wanted to join C-Sec or the Joint Military.

"Do you know what's going on? Why we have to be here so close to school start? I just received a general message saying there was a database error." Jane looked to Garrus.

Garrus cleared his throat. "I think that is technically accurate. I heard a rumor that some classes were overscheduled or something like that, and affected parties had to come in. Were probably the last groups to be shuffled around."

"Garrus Vakarian, desk five please. Garrus Vakarian, desk five. Jane Shepard, desk one please. Jane Shepard, desk one."

She patted her brothers arm, and left to find desk one. Garrus walked next to her for the short distance, before they separated. Garrus moved to enter Office five, which was closer to the lobby than Office one, for some reason.

"It was nice meeting you!" Jane said with a wave. Garrus waved and nodded and then disappeared into the office. She'd really like to see a map to find out if there was a reason why the bigger number was closer to the lobby. Shrugging, she entered Office one, and braced herself for what changes were about to come her way.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Bioware's characters and universe. Im just borrowing them for creative purposes; I make no money for any of this.

Chapter 2

New Classes, New Friends

The tired eyes of an overworked Asari met Jane's own.

"Busy day?" Jane asked sympathetically.

"Oh you have no idea! Everyone, and I do mean everyone, was scheduled for CPR and Basic First Aid for their physical credit requirement. We've been having to shuffle schedules every which way, and of course, the yelling…" She trailed off.

"I understand. I'm so sorry, and it's never easy to deal with angry people on a daily basis." Jane sat across from the Asari and pulled her tres chic messenger bag to her lap. She sorted through the folder and pulled out the hard copy of her admittance paperwork, checked it over, and handed it to the counselor.

The counselor looked briefly surprised, possibly at having at least one student prepared, and tapped a few keys on her console. She touched the screen a few times and then said "OK. For the physical requirement, in that particular time slot, all I have available at this point is Hand to Hand Combat. If that doesn't work for you due to medical reasons, I can waive the requirement for this semester, and you can make it up at a later semester."

"No, it's fine. Not my optimal choice for a class, but I'd rather not have to take two physical credits in a later semester. It might work out better anyhow," Jane said thoughtfully, then grinned. "Out of curiosity, why for medical reasons?"

"Oh, I'm so sorry. I wasn;t trying to pry, it's just you have a red flag on the medical section of your administrative paperwork, and I don't have access to any details, so I have to offer based on that. In case you have a heart condition, or Vrolik's, or something. This mix up with the database has created so many issues, the least of which is trying to make sure everyone is properly scheduled. We've had to issue more than a fair number of medical waivers this semester. I'm pretty sure next year we will have a supervisory semester, at least, and if we have too many waivers or requirement failures we could lose our certifications and have to reapply," she shook her head with frustration. "It's a real mess, and I do not like seeing my alma mater going through this. Not that you wanted to know all that. Here I am just rambling on."

Jane smiled sympathetically, hoping for more gossip. Not the she was a gossip hound really, but current events that directly affected her life were of strict importance after living in the colonies where gossip could mean life or death. "It's quite all right. I totally understand how frustrating that could be, and I am so sorry you have to deal with the situation. Hand to Hand is just fine. Is it in the same time and building slot listed previously?"

The counselor glanced at the screen and tapped a few more keys. "Yes, the time slot is exactly the same, and the building is the gymnasium building in the sparring room. It's on the first floor, the largest room when you first enter through the main entryway."

Jane wrote that down on her paperwork. She had an omnitool, but preferred the comfort of writing. She enjoyed doodling and always had a pen at hand to jot down a feeling or idea that crossed her mind.

"Would you happen to know the name of the instructor?" she asked. Wouldn't hurt to see if she could wheedle a little more information out.

"I don't. He's a new hire after the old instructor decided to retire out of the blue. I did overhear the dean saying the new hire was a successful bounty hunter. He probably has some interesting tricks if that is true I don't even have his name listed, it was so last minute. Of course, that could have been about any of the four new hires this year." The counselor looked very enthusiastic to gossip, so Jane decided to pry a little more. Nothing too big, but maybe some important little tidbit would slip through.

"Four new hires?" Jane played up the incredulity. She didn't actually know what the average was for hiring in a college setting, but she could spin a fib if four was pretty average.

"I know! It's been so hectic! New building and scheduling, new professors to train and schedule, new scheduling!, new biometrics…" she trailed off and straightened. "It's a year of new, so hopefully everything else will progress more smoothly than this mess. Were there any other classes you might need rescheduled while we're here?" Professionalism returned with a snap.

"No. Thank you for all you've done. Have a good rest of the day," Jane said with a winning smile, as she stood and turned to leave the office. She hadn't gotten very much information at all, but there had been something. She'd figure it out, like one of the sniffers in her settlement, she could be persistent about a trail. She turned into the hallway and saw John chatting with two other humans. She walked up and smiled.

"It's a load of bull though. The system malfunctions so I lose a class I'd rather have. I already know how to fight! My dad taught me and my sisters how to take of ourselves," the girl with the black hair was finishing up vehemently.

John pulled Jane's arm and said "I agree. I wanted Weapons and Modifications first, but I guess I can make this work. Guys, this is my sister, Jane. Jane, this is Ashley," he gestured to the girl who had just been speaking. "And Kaidan," he gestured to a too handsome young man.

"Nice to meet you," Jane said as she shook their hands firmly. "Did you guys get hit with the conflict as well?"

Kaidan nodded. "Yeah, and I should have already been sorted out, because they were going through alphabetically, but Ash and I were delayed out of Vancouver. Our shuttle had maintenance issues, and with the traffic they couldn't get another to replace it. We only arrived on Citadel yesterday. I'm an 'A'! I shouldn't have to take Hand to Hand with some hard ass turian." Kaidan managed to avoid a whine, but it still rubbed Jane the wrong way. She was all about those old earth mottos. Seize the day! C'est la vie! YOLO! (She wasn't so sure about that last one, but mottos!)

She flashed a toothy grin. "Have you heard anything about the new instructor?" The group started to move out of the administration building, and headed towards the student housing complexes. The twins were renting a two bedroom economy unit. And that really meant economy.

Ashley held up her hand. "Wait. They have a new instructor? My older sister, she's a junior this year, she had old 'Hard Ass' Gaiscus, and he is supposedly a fixture. Never to leave the campus until he dies she said. Brutal instruction techniques, probably wants to go out in Hand to Hand class. Glorious battle or some such. I'm not looking forward to it." She shook her head.

"So you two are from earth? What's it like there?" Jane looked at Ashley then Kaidan.

"It's nice. The Alliance was talking about an initiative to replant the Sahara desert. Bring new farmland available. The environmentalists were starting their protests when we left the planet. Things like that happen a lot," Kaidan replied. Jane and John shared a look.

"So, how about sending aid to the colonies out in the Traverse? There's no outrage for what's happening?" Jane raised her eyebrows.

"What do you mean?" Ashley asked.

"Seriously? Earth colonies are being attacked, settlements raided and the people sold to slavery. The council does nothing, and the Alliance is just going to let their colonies be targeted?"

"I haven't heard anything about that. CerbaCorps still has their Colonial Recruitment Initiative in full swing. If there is any information about that at all, the people aren't being made aware of it. Are you sure there have been messages sent to the Alliance HQ?" Kaidan asked. Jane nodded emphatically. "Hmmm. We'll have to continue this later. Ash and I live here," Kaidan pointed out one of the largest and most luxurious units for student housing.

"All right. See you guys later. In Hand to Hand at the latest, right?" Jane snarked a bit, a little jealous, a lot angry. The group waved and separated, the Shepards heading to their own run down unit. Jane sighed, and twined her arm through her brothers. "I'm glad we made it away, but I worry so much." John patted her arm and she smiled at him, trying to cover the frustration in her posture.

As they entered home, Jane said "I'm going to shower and sleep. This day was a lot of disappointment, and I have a lot of prep tomorrow. We're getting our syllabi for all our courses and I want to make sure I have the required reading before class starts."

John laughed. "Such a perfectionist, Sis! Ok, get some rest. I don't want you getting sick." He squeezed her shoulders to comfort her, and then sat on the couch to watch the tiny vid screen that had been provided. Jane smiled at her brother's back and then went to the bathroom.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

A Run and A Fight

Jane woke, sore from a crappy bed, and a headache from the nightmares that occasionally plagued her. She stretched, grimacing as joints popped and muscles started loosening. She sighed and internally debated about going for a run. There was a track nearby, and a run would help clear her head from bad dreams and ease the creaks from her body, even if it hurt to start. On the other hand, it was freakin early, and she hadn't slept very well. Jane sat up, rolling her head from side to side, and decided to just go for it. Classes would start tomorrow, and she had a day of sitting and reading, so some exercise would do her good. Quietly, she stood and moved around the room, dressing, putting her hair up, and taking care of business. As she sneaked out of the econodorm, her brother rolled over on the couch and muttered in his sleep. The vid screen was still on and was covering the worst of her noise, but she still paused for a moment. John stayed asleep, so she tiptoed out.

Jane exited the student housing building into the simulated spring weather. It was perpetually outdoorsy temperatures. No cold weather gear required. Jane briskly walked the half mile to the track, which was well-lit in the faux pre-dawn. With classes not having started yet, and the early hour, the track proved to be empty; everyone was trying to squeeze the last bit of sleep prior to class work, late night study sessions, benders, and late night "study" parties.

She sat her omni tool to broadcast her music directly to her translator implant and ancient earth tunes from the late 20th century began playing. She started stretching, warming up tired muscles, waking up, feeling better with repetition until she was ready to run. She jumped a few times, ready to go when her music faded out and was replaced by a voice.

"Mind if I join you?"

Jane whipped around and turned her music off. "Hey. Hi there, Garrus. I didn't hear you come up. You going for a run too?" and mentally berated herself, because why else would he be at the track? Honestly Jane!

Garrus' mandibles fluttered a little. "Every morning. I guess now that I'm here I really don't have to anymore. No more dad to make me, but why not? It's good for the body." Jane could practically feel the disregard for Papa Vakarian, although she imagined he was very good at hiding it in the presence of other turians.

"The mind too," she smiled, and Garrus nodded, his mandibles flaring. She had gathered that was the turian version of a grin, and was actually enjoying piecing figuring out turian facial expressions.

Garrus cleared his throat a little. "I did some research after I left the administration yesterday. I realize you were trying to greet me with a "handshake" and I apologize for not accepting your greeting. Turians are self-conscious about their claws around other races." He held up his hand, claws looking dangerous, three fingers odd. Jane reached out hesitantly, looking askance and getting a nod before she took his left hand in her right. The hide was surprisingly soft and very warm. She smiled and shook his hand.

"You're more than welcome to join me, but you'll probably out run me. I can go for ages, but I'm not the swiftest." she joked. The pair began jogging around the track together.

"So Garrus, with that mix up with scheduling what class did you wind up getting?"

"I had actually signed up for hand to hand combat, but I guess the instructor changed, which caused the error in scheduling. I'm just glad I got my spot back," Garrus chuffed a little.

"I'm in hand to hand as well! Do you know anything about the new instructor? I got that he may or may not have been a bounty hunter."

Garrus looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "You remind me of someone. Anyway I asked around a little bit too, and heard a rumor that the new instructor might be krogan."

"Krogan?!"

"I know. It would be strange, but you have to admit they are excellent fighters."

""Well, yeah. It's just, didn't they start a war with the Council? So why would a major Council University hire one on?" Jane mused.

"True. There must be more to it though. It isn't talked about, but apparently a long while ago there was a race of aggressive interstellar… bugs, I guess. They lived on planets that the Council couldn't get to, so they approached the Krogan Chieftains for assistance. After the Krogan helped, the Council shunned them. I don't know how much of that is true, or if it's all just a bed time story my mom made up. She always wanted my sister and I to be tolerant of others. 'Always look for the other point of view'. Kind of funny to say that now, but my dad did too, in a different way." Garrus reminisced.

"Our mothers would have gotten along famounly. My mom was always telling my siblings and me to look for the best in people, see the other side of things, be tolerant." Jane smiled sadly. They continued on in silence for a few laps, the sound of their breaths keeping tempo. On the fourth lap, Jane slowed a bit. "It's starting to get light. I'll need to head back soon. I have to make sure I have the first day's reading done."

"You don't need to rush. The professors aren't opening downloads until around nine o'clock Citadel Standard." Garrus said it nonchalantly, but Jane was sure she heard something else there. They were kindred spirits of a sort, and she really needed a friend, and for all his intimidating looks, Garrus probably did too.

"You're right. I could use the exercise. It's been awhile since I've just jogged. I get the feeling you don't see eye to eye with your dad."

Garrus snorted. "He's C Sec through and through, and I'm supposed to follow in his footsteps. It's not that I don't think C Sec is a good profession, because it is, but there is just so much bureaucracy. I hear all the time how this criminal or that one is back out on the streets because of a technicality. My dad always pushed me to perfection because of it, sometimes to the point of pushing me away." His words were bitter but his tone was sad. "How about you?"

"My dad was awesome. He always encouraged us, the kids, to follow what we wanted to do. John wanted to work on shuttles, discover the next big thing in fuel. I wanted to learn every bit of history in the universe. I know that is such a librarian pursuit, but I loved reading about old history and then making up stories and doodling them out. Then two years ago, there was this raid on my settlement and my mom and youngest brother were taken. Dad blamed John, and he just… stopped trying. Drinking and forgetting were more important than being a dad." She slowed to a walk and Garrus followed suit. He reached out and took her hand. Jane smiled and gently squeezed. "Thanks."

"JANE!" The yell from across the track caused her to release Garrus' hand so quickly she got scratched pretty badly. She turned in time to see John running towards her. "You need to come home now. I had no idea where you were, and then I find you hanging out with some turian…" He made it over to them, the sneer in his voice making Jane cringe. "And he hurt you!" John started to push past Jane to get to Garrus, and Jane kept side stepping to keep heself between them. "You keep you filthy claws off my sister, and stay away from my family." John growled out towards Garrus.

"We're friends. She can have friends." Garrus huffed out. Jane started pushing he brother back towards their domicile. She turned and smiled at Garrus and gave tiny wave. See you tomorrow, she mouthed, and Garrus spread his mandibles and nodded. Then she turned around to give the brunt of her ire towards the jerk in front of her, once they reached home.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I forgot the disclaimer in the last chapter, but this applies to all the chapters (in case I forget again, because I do that), I don't make any money for these fictions. The characters belong to Bioware, I just have fun with them for my own amusement.

A/N: Thanks for all the views/reviews/favorites/follows. It makes me happy to see that people actually enjoy my particular brand of sarcasm. I just love you guys so much!

Chapter 4

Bigotry and Minutiae

Jane pulled away from her brother and crossed her arms with a frown. The pair continued into the student housing unit and up their flat in silence. As they entered, she turned towards her brother who held up his hand to silence her, as he yanked the door shut behind him. Jane winced, hoping the neighbors were already awake.

"Look sis…"

Jane cut him off. "No, you look. I can make friends with whomever I want. I know you think it's your job to protect me, and maybe that's ok in certain instances, but I can make friends, and I do not need your approval."

"But he's a turian, Jane. Even if his kind didn't take mom, they're just as responsible. They have had every opportunity to help us, to rescue our people, to run off the batarians, and instead they sit there with their thumbs up their asses screaming 'We can't hear you!' while the fires burn. They brag about having the largest military force in the galaxy, and instead of protecting Council interests they move their space ships and let the batarians walk through and take whoever they want!" Joh heaved some angry breaths, his rant finally sputtering out, and Jane really wanted to hug her brother, but knew she needed to stand firm.

She went to the kitchen to check the cut she had given herself. It had already mostly stopped bleeding on its own, and probably just needed a little cleaning. She washed her hand, applied antiseptic, thought carefully about how to respond. "I don't necessarily disagree with what you're saying, but it would be disrespectful of me, to Mom and her memory, and to Garrus, to say that he is just as responsible. He wasn't even out of school yet when Mom got taken. I know Dad says you should have done something, but you couldn't or you would be gone too. How can I give him more blame when he is in the same position you are?" Jane looked at her brother, his face suggesting his temper had already petered out.

"Ok, I concede that point, but Dad always told me not to trust anyone who doesn't look like us. Truth be told, I don't trust that Kaidan guy either…"

"Oh but Ashley is so trustworthy because she has boobs right?" Jane interjected. Jane moved to sit down, thinking how brother needed a metaphorical boot to the head. Brothers!

"I didn't say that, but she seems pretty straightforward and blunt. Kaidan seems honest enough at least, but he strikes me as a politician, and that is really not the point! The point here is that turian hurt you! He is different. Different and dangerous, and his people are untrustworthy in all my experience dealing with raids and apologies." John's sneer made her want to kick his shin. She loved him dearly; they had been together every day of their lives, but he was so obstinate. He could be so caring, but he really did not like to be wrong.

"I hurt myself when I turned around."

"And it still wouldn't have happened if he was human!"

"Look, you can be my scary big brother all you want, but you will not stop me from making friends here, and if one of those friends is a turian or an elcor or whatever, you can't stop that. You can be unhappy to yourself, but don't push that on me, ok? I just want to go to college, pretend to be normal, and just … be. I don't like the looks of pity I get when I talk to humans, and it always happens. I hate that look." Jane poked her brother and he grabbed her hand and hugged her.

"All right. Fair enough. You can do all my homework and I won't tell you who to be friends with." He grinned when she smacked him.

"Im going to shower and get started on day one required reading. You should too."

"Nah, I'm going to watch some biotiball. I glance at the lesson tonight. It'll stick with me better." Jane laughed, knowing deep down he would be asking her for answers in their shared classes tomorrow.

As she was showering, the message received alert for the flat chimed through. Curiosity getting the better of her, she quickly finished her shower, toweled off, and dressed.

"What's up?" she asked, peeking into the living area.

"We got invited to a club with Kaidan, Ashley, and a couple of other guys I haven't met yet." John jumped up with a yell when the human biotiball team scored over the asari.

"John, I can't go out tonight. I have to make sure I have the reading done, and I know where my classes are, and …"

John raised his eyebrows at her, looking away from the vid screen for the first time in the conversation. "Don't worry about it. I crushed Kaidan's hopes and dreams, and said you'd be terribly busy."

"You are awful! But thank you," she laughed.

"Yeah, yeah. I'll leave later tonight and be back before class starts tomorrow."

"Ah-ah! You'd jump all over me if I said that to you, good sir." She wagged her finger.

"Fine! I'm not sure when we'll be done, but I'll message you with updates. Better, Ma?"

"It'll do."

She went to her room and pulled up her omni tool to download the paperwork for the five courses she had. It was strange to see something for Hand to Hand, but since she'd been so curious about the instructor, that was her starting point. Her omni tool beeped: Downloads complete.

Galactic History 101 – Basic profile worksheet, one page of reading

Customs and Traditions Through the Galaxy – Basic profile worksheet, nine pages of reading

Asari Literature – Syllabus only, no required worksheets (YAY!)

Basic Science, Year One – Basic profile worksheet

And here we go, syllabus only, which kind of brightened her day, because nine pages of reading for one course was kind of overboard for not even having started class yet.

HAND TO HAND COMBAT TRAINING

Instruction: Urdnot Wrex, BH, MTC

Week 1: Proper form

Week 2: Self Defense

Week 3: Holds and Locks

Week 4: Blocks and Counters

Week 5: Dirty fighting, fighting to win

Week 6: Kicks

Week 7: Review

Week 8: Finals

Further instructions followed regarding attire, footwear, hair for humans. And week 5 sounded fun, and she was getting distracted!

An extranet search of Urdnot Wrex revealed a Bounty Hunter success rate that was extremely impressive. Of particular interest to Jane was a Badass Weekly article proclaiming the top ten bounty hunters galaxy wide. Professor Wrex had topped the other nine on the list with their totals combined. Her omni tool beeped with a message.

Have you looked up Wrex yet? – G

Just did. Pretty impressive complete record. – J

Have all your assignments downloaded? – G

Yeah. Not as much as I was expecting. – J

Want to have lunch and compare? – G

Sure. Where at? – J

Garrus sent her an address and she gathered up her messenger bag. She went to the living room to let John know she was going out for lunch, and was actually startled to see an empty living room, with the vid screen still on. Jane turned off the vid screen and saw a message saying her brother was out to lunch with the group he'd be gone the evening with. Jane sighed with relief that there wouldn't be any confrontation about who she was meeting for lunch. She left the apartment, locked the door, and went to meet her, friend.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Bioware owns all these here characters. I don't make any money from these fictions, they are merely the product of an overactive imagination that has to go somewhere. I am grateful that Bioware lets me borrow their sand box from time to time.

A/N: OK, so I apologize for the delay here. You know how dodge ball, and there are balls flying at your head, and you have to dodge? Well, life kind of started throwing hammers and writing took a back seat to other things. I do appreciate everyone that has followed/favorite this product of an overactive imagination though. I appreciate it very much. Thank you so much!

College Effect

A Mass Effect Alternate Universe

Chapter 5

Detective Duo

The address Garrus sent her turned out to be a levo/dextro noodle shop, and the specialty was spicy noodles, which sounded absolutely delicious. Jane hadn't had a particularly great meal since she had arrived on Citadel. Depending on the Shepards' cooking skills was an excellent way to lose weight, she thought wryly. She approached Garrus. "Noodles, huh?"

Garrus' mandibles spread wide and he shrugged. "They're cheap!"

"Which is a truly fantastic thing. I could probably eat a whole cow…" She blushed. "I don't cook much. I should have learned, you know, after mom. She tried to teach me, when it was all snag-a-colony-husband-who-will-be-in-Chamber-of-Elders, good old days. It was just too hard after, because I could smell her, even though I know that isn't truly possible."

Her Turian friend bobbed his head. "Shall we have at least a bowl then?" His hand swept towards the door, allowing Shepard to enter first. Where she was promptly assaulted by Salarian that spoke so fast, Jane was SURE he was on some sort of juice. The look of shock on her face apparently required no translation, and the proprietor of the noodle shop slowed to an insulting speaking speed.

"Can. I. Get. You. A. Bowl. For. Here. Or. Should. I. Pack. It. Up?" Each word very slowly spoken. Very carefully enunciated. Very insultingly delivered. Jane really wanted to copy John (just this once!) and punch him right then and there. She took a deep breath and glared at her soon to be ex-friend. "Thanks for the warning" she growled out of the corner of her mouth, and received an apologetic shrug that was trying to cover laughter. She turned towards the Salarian with a brilliant smile plastered to her face.

"Two bowls of your finest spicy noodles – one dextro, one levo – packed to go please, my good man. My BFF here will handle the bill. Thank you so very much!" She turned her still smiling face towards Garrus and jerked her head towards the register.

"I maybe deserved that."

"You think?" Jane snorted, but her anger was short lived, and not ultra-serious. Garrus paid and grabbed the two containers of food. As a gesture of peace, he took her to a small park like area, with a few holo-trees and –flowers, and single unoccupied table in the middle. It wasn;t terribly far away, but there seemed to be little to no traffic that even came close, thus it was really well hidden in plain sight. Grabbing her noodles and fork, Janes asked, "How did you know about this place?"

Garrus cleared his throat. "We were here once. My family I mean. Mom was on Citadel for an experimental treatment, and she looked so very sad. Dad brought us here with a picnic to cheer my mom up." Jane handed Garrus his container and fork, then cracked her own open and took a thoughtful bite. Before she could say anything about his dad, Garrus pulled his omnitool screen, and took his own first bite. Understanding without words, Jane pulled up her screen.

"I have Galactic History 101, Customs and Traditions, Asari Literature, Basic Science, and Hand to Hand Combat. I'm glad they didn't screw any other classes up. I need that science refresher. Not my best subject, right there." Jane's tone was a mixture of business and relief that pulled a chuckle out of Garrus.

"I did have the Theory and Principles of Weapon's Systems and Weapons Handling, but with the mix up I have Basic Science as well. Apparently there weren't any other advanced courses available…" He trailed off, his voice becoming unreadable.

Jane, ever the optimist, pumped her fist in the air. "Yes! I call you as my tutor!" The comment pulled another chuckle out of Garrus. "I'm sorry your schedule was effed up, but I can't say I'm disappointed in having a science nerd available when I need." Jane tried to keep her voice serious.

Garrus' mandibles fluttered rapidly as he tried to keep himself from doing that wonderful Turian grin thing. "Well we have History together, so I guess I can claim the history geek as my tutor," he snarked, pointing his fork at her before digging into his food with gusto. Probably to keep from laughing, Jane thought, as she started in on her own food. All too soon the containers were empty.

"Bummer. I'm still kind of hungry." Jane sighed, wistfully staring into her container.

"I can run back and get you another."

Jane grinned, her Round Table Knight. "No. Thank you though. So Hand to Hand Combat. I don't know about you, but I think it's odd, to say the least, that they couldn't make room for one person in each of the classes. Is there a hard limit on the amount of students? Won't something like 3% withdraw anyway? Do they take those figures into account, do you think? Jane continued her line of questioning, spacing out, while Garrus stuttered and tried to interject answers into her monologue. She was following her own thought trails, not even realizing she was still talking, until she did. Jane blushed. "Sorry, I get swept up in my thoughts. Our neighbor said that's what made us such great conspiracy nuts. That's Dad, John and me, I mean."

"It's all right. I was just going to say that I think your questions had some merit because there isn't a hard upper limit on class size, unless room occupancy ratings dictate such. Granted I can't see the numbers they see, but when I signed up for Weapons Handling, it was listed at 38% filled. I kept track of the numbers and last week it was 52%, then all at once, no numbers and people are being called to switch classes because of an error." Garrus shook his head. Jane grabbed the empty containers and utensils and jumped up.

"Let's walk and talk. It helps me think." Jane tossed their garbage into the public disposal nearby and started bouncing on her toes while Garrus stood up.

He looked down at her. "You're kind of bossy, aren't you?"

"So John tells me. I don't see it."

Garrus chuckled again before he managed to straighten his features. Jane tapped her chin thoughtfully as the pair moved back towards the main walkway. "Anyhow… I agree the numbers are off. Maybe it's what caused the classes to be overbooked in the first place?"

"My councilor gave me a line about a database error that caused everyone to be dumped into the same Phys Ed class though, so I think the numbers were accurate until whatever caused that blackout."

"I got the same spiel. I managed to get her to say that there was some new software installed. Scheduling, biometric. Who knows what else, because she stopped talking pretty quick. But a respected University wouldn't change such important software a week before class start. Would they?" Jane was really in now.

"Well they might. There was some gossip, I guess you could call it. My dad was discussing a data hacker that has yet to be apprehended. One of the galaxies most wanted criminals. If the University thought they were at risk, they might switch and upgrade security measures to better protect whatever they have. But the timing does suck, if so."

Jane's face fell. "Oh boo. A non-mystery mystery. What classes are tomorrow for you?"

"History, Hand to Hand, and Turian Lit."

"We have the same first two classes then. You going for a run again?"

"I was thinking about it. You?"

"I was thinking about it. See you in the morning then?"

Garrus' mandibles spread really wide, and he kept them that way. "Yeah." Jane grinned too as they finished the walk back to the student housing area in a comfortable silence.


	6. Chapter 6

College Effect

Chapter 6

Disclaimer: As always these are Bioware's characters. I just play gleefully with them, and have fun doing what if scenarios. I do not make any money.

A/N: Fun fact, Ashley has three siblings that are younger than her. I made up her older sister, just because I needed a character.

Jane made her way up the stairs towards the flat. The building's elevator was perpetually broken, it seemed. On the bright side, they had gotten an apartment on third floor. She shuddered at the thought of an apartment on floor 12. Her omni tool pinged. She stopped on the landing for the third floor and pulled up her message screen. 'Hey Bug. Had lunch. Seeing a movie. Will ping you later. BigBro'. She grinned at her brother's use of the ancient nickname, and sent him a message of thanks back.

She reached for the door to the hallway proper. "Guess who?" The voice and warm breath of air came out of nowhere. Jane turned quickly on her foot, and punched out where the air had come from. Her fist connected with Kaidan's nose, which promptly began bleeding.

"Oh cheese and crackers! I'm so sorry Kaidan!" She grabbed his arm, opened the door and hustled the injured man towards her apartment. He flailed trying to keep up, and to keep from spattering blood everywhere. "You startled me. Let's get you some ice and a rag, and I am soo sorry. I really wasn;t expecting you, I thought you were with John, and what are you DOING here?" Her fast paced litany of apologies finally petered out on the question, as she disengaged the lock to the apartment.

Jane pulled Kaidan inside and sat him at the tiny dining table. "Ashley and John decided to go see that new movie, Blasto something. Not really my thing, so I said I'd catch up with them at the club later. Happened to see you walking by and here I am." His voice carried surprise, and a certain quality of nasal. She handed him a rag and pressed the emergency cold pack across the bridge of his nose and over his eyes. "I didn't mean to startle you. I thought you heard me on the stairs. You also do not need hand to hand apparently." His chuckle was rueful.

"I was… My omni tool… I don't normally fight." She didn't really know what to say, and feeling guilty sucked. "You may need to go to the clinic for some medigel and to get it set. I'm pretty sure it's broken, not a hundred percent sure, but pretty sure. You're definitely going to have some bruising." Jane winced at the already darkening skin.

"It'd ok. Maked me look mandly." He struck a pose, reminiscent of old comic heroes. The effect was ruined by the bloody rag and cold pack. Jane chuckled weakly. "I didn't actually come just to get punched though. I figured I could see if we had any classes in common." She grimaced a little, wondering how long it would take for him to be able to talk without sounding like he had the worst cold in existence. "I mean if you don't want to compare…" Kaidan trailed off at her expression.

"No it's just you sound so awful!" She covered her mouth in shock. "I mean, you sound sick, like allergies or a cold, and I can't believe I said that. Insert foot!" Jane started laughing.

"I dee how idt ids. Laugh idt up." She laughed even harder. "This is a good way to destroy self esteem you know!"

"Delpf edeem!" Jane imitated with a guffaw, and Kaidan chuckled a bit too. "Ok! OK." She breathed deeply. "I'm sorry again. I can't quite help myself. So, you have hand to hand tomorrow right?" Kaidan nodded. "I have basic science and asari literature tomorrow, and Friday I have customs and traditions and history 101. Soooo Monday and Thursday, and Tuesday and Friday with Focused Study on Wednesday."

Kaidan's face fell a bit. "We have hand to hand and history together. I went for Advanced Study on Wednesday to try and knock out a couple of extra classes this semester."

"What's your major?"

"Politics and Law. I chose a minor emphasis on biotics."

"You're biotic?" She was genuinely curious now. "I've never met a human biotic before. Only a few Asari."

"I think most Asari have biotic capabilities actually. But yeah. It's why I'm on Citadel. Ash didn't have to come with me. I know she had a few scholarships to Earth based Universities, but she insisted. Her sister, can't let me get in trouble. Probably something about handsome boys in there too. Between us, I think she was just grateful to get away from most of her sisters though."

"Aren't ya'll staying with her sister?" Jane was confused.

"Her older sister. We're renting a big apartment with her. Ash has three younger sisters at home though. I always wondered how her dad handled that." An awkward silence claimed the room.

"How's the nose?" Jane asked partly to fill the silence and partly to change the subject from the past, which could get even more awkward than it was at present. Kaidan hesitantly pulled the rag away from his face.

"I think it's good." He touched either side of his nose and flinched.

"Good. You should really go to the clinic. I don't have any medigel, and I really think it's broken."

"You're probably right. Can I get you to change your mind about tonight?"

"I'm sorry. I'm going to bed early tonight. It's been a long day, and I still need to do the introductory questionnaires and skim the first day's reading assignment." She picked at the table.

"Be still my heart." Kaidan laughed. "Ok, but we really need to go out sometime." Jane nodded, and stood. Kaidan handed over the cold pack and stood as well.

"The swelling doesn't look too awful." Jane examined Kaidan's nose, but his skeptical look said she had not been convincing.

"I'll head to the clinic then. Can I message you later to get together this weekend?" She couldn't crush that hopeful look, after she had punched him.

"Sounds fine." Jane put on her best polite bedside manner smile as they headed towards the door. "I'll see you in class tomorrow then?"

"Indeed. See you tomorrow." Kaidan waved at her as he left the flat. Jane breathed a sigh of relief as the door latched behind her. He was cute, but she just wasn't looking for a boyfriend, and Kaidan definitely put out the I-want-date-you vibes. She engaged the security lock and moved into the dining room to clean up. Clean, read, questionnaires. With pursed lips, Jane made up her mind to be in bed by nine whether she was done with the work or not.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Ok, so this chapter went unexpected places, and I have a couple of other chapters planned following this one from other viewpoints which will explain some things more fully that are eluded to here. Normally, I'm like 'Ok, storyline, yes, let's go!" but my brain keeps yelling "PLOT TWIST!" so I go with it, and hope you guys like it. Much love! Thank you so much for follows/favorites/reviews!

Disclaimer: And here is the obligatory I do not own Bioware or their characters, they are just gracious enough to allow people to use them without profit, which I do not make.

College Effect

Chapter 7

Poor Jane

BEEPBEEPBEEP!

The alarm blared right there, right in her ear, and she slammed her hand down on it. The poor clock silenced on a questioning sounding 'Beeep?'. Jane sat up and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. No matter her promise to be in bed by nine, the honor student in her just wouldn't allow it. 'You must finish it allll' had kept up in her mind, and Jane knew she wouldn't sleep until the work was done. "Stupid brain," she muttered to the now silent alarm clock. She stood, pulled on her running clothes, then looked in the mirror. She winced at the dark circles under her eyes, the spoils of war with homework. She pulled a brush through her hair, then yanked it back into what was rapidly becoming her "college look", dorky as it might be.

Jane made her way to the front door, then stopped and backtracked to check on her brother. John had messaged her just before she went to bed. He was, of course, going to be out until closing time, and then who knows what from there. She peeked into his room and saw him sprawled out diagonally across the bed, with one leg on the floor. She recognized that as the too-drunk-to-get-undressed flop. The leg was probably to keep the world from spinning, which in her limited experience, never worked. Jane quietly closed her brother's door. She'd make sure he was up in time for class, of course, because she was that awesome. If she happened to be a little overly cheerful and loud, well, it wouldn't be HER problem now would it? She left the apartment building with a bit of a chuckle and took off at an easy pace to the track.

Jane reached the track and started in on her stretched when a familiar figure loped up. "Good morning!" she called out cheerfully.

"Morning," Garrus rumbled as he walked over and started his own stretching routine. "Been here long? I realized we didn't actually agree on a time, so I was gambling on 'around six'."

"It works out perfectly really. So what are you most excited about today? I'm actually kind of looking forward to hand to hand. I want to meet the instructor sure, but I guess learning self-defense would be a good thing too." The pair finished stretching out and started around the track at an easy jog.

"I've been looking forward to hand to hand as well. Probably for different reasons though."

"Oh yes, you have me pegged. I can hide nothing from your deductive prowess."

"It's a gift really." The over-the-top smugness served in place of sarcasm. "So what are you hoping to get out of hand to hand?" Curiosity. Her nemesis!

"Well, since I get this opportunity before mandatory service, I'm hoping I can get some new tricks, new techniques. The old instructor taught Turian military, and that was it. If Professor Wrex has seen as much as his article suggests, maybe I can get that edge to be the best in hand to hand while I serve."

"It's a culture thing, right? You have that promote on skill thing?"

"Meritocracy. Promotion through the hierarchy based on deeds and merit," Garrus intoned.

"It sounds really competitive." Jane's breath was coming in puffs now. Garrus seemed unaffected thus far in the jog and talk.

"It can be, although being TOO competitive can hurt the hierarchy as well, so discretion, courage, 'Die for the Cause', all that. I just really like being the best. I'm not a very good turian."

"That's something else we have in common then. I want to be the best, and I am also not a very good turian. The way I see it, even if I'm not the best, YET, I'll have the best tutor in science, and hand to hand. I think it give me a better shot at beating you. Not sure about being a better turian… I'll work on it."

Garrus' laughter made Jane smile. "Now that I have your plan, I may sabotage you!"

Jane gasped, indignant. "You wouldn't!" I will so not buy you any drinks, ever! EVER!"

"Sprint straight, jog the corners?" Garrus gestured to the track, bringing her back to the workout she was currently half assing. Jane nodded, and they took off. Garrus was much faster on the sprint, but he held up on the corners so they could jog side by side, even if she couldn't speak because she was dying. Only two laps later, Jane was completely winded.

"I thought…I was in… better shape…" She wheezed, and raised her arms to catch deeper breaths. Garrus was at least huffing a bit now, which made her feel slightly better.

"Let's walk a lap. I don't know about you, but I am seriously going to need some breakfast." Garrus put an arm to Jane's back, which she appreciated. She felt a bit wobbly.

She nodded. "Yeah, I may have forgotten to eat anything after you bought me lunch."

Garrus looked amused. "I'm going to be buying you a lot of noodles this year, aren't I?"

Jane blushed, which covered by the flush of her exertion from earlier, thankfully. "Well, maybe. Probably. I get focused. I just forget sometimes. Occasionally."

"It's ok. I do the same thing. We'll just have to switch off buying dinner for study time. We're guaranteed at least one meal a day then, right?" Garrus pulled his arm back, when Jane signaled she was better. "So what were you doing that you forgot to eat? There wasn't that much work, was there?" The pair continued walking, breathing becoming easier.

"I sort of, maybe, kind of punched someone…" She trailed off at Garrus' intense look.

"How do you sort of punch someone?"

"Well, ok, I DID punch him, but it wasn't on purpose. He scared me."

"Scared you?" Garrus's voice was very soft, and for the first time since they had met, Jane felt uncertain.

"I was distracted, and he thought I heard him come up behind me. I didn't, and I turned and punched him before I realized. You'll meet him in hand to hand today, along with John's soon to be girlfriend apparently."

"Did you hit him good then?" Garrus had relaxed, and his voice was curious. Jane's confidence returned.

"I think I broke his nose. I was obligated to fix, but since I didn't have any medigel, all I could do was bring him in for a cold pack and a rag to get the bleeding stopped. She wrinkled her nose. "I'm pretty sure he's interested in me, but I'd rather do the friend thing. Boyfriends are complicated." The duo stopped walking, and she took a breath that was thankfully not shaky. "I don't really want a boyfriend right now, because of reasons, but I can sure use all the friends I can get. I think it's going to be a problem. Maybe not. People surprise me."

Garrus hesitantly hugged her with one arm, and she didn't fight. "I'm your friend. Your BFF, whatever that is."

Jane laughed into his chest. "Best. Friend. Forever. It's a really old Earth thing, when people used cell phones to text. It had a number of characters limit on sending, so people got crafty and shortened things. BFF, LOL, WTF. It allowed for saved characters and thus longer messages that today would probably look like gibberish." There was no hint of whatever she had sensed earlier.

"We are very lucky indeed to have technology advanced so far then. I can barely keep up with the colloquial speak, I don't even want to think about throwing just letters in there. Breakfast?" He sounded so hopeful, Jane laughed.

"Lead the way, big guy."


End file.
